2 Kings 17 describes the final days of the northern nation of Israel in the 7th century BC, as it was overpowered by the nearby superpower of Assyria. Hoshea, Israel’s last king, attempts to deceive the King of Assyria. On finding out, Assyria lays siege to Israel, it’s people are scattered in the nations around them, and people from surrounding nations such as Babylon and Cush are moved in to the now abandoned cities in Samaria to settle there.

But the author of 2 Kings doesn’t attribute the demise of Israel in those days to the rise of superpower nations around them. He gives a theological perspective that began centuries earlier. He attributes it to Israel turning away from the LORD to instead worship and sacrifice to idols – the same idols that surrounding nations had worshipped. They were wupposed to be God’s holy and chosen people but instead…

They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. (2 Kings 17:15)

The act of worshipping created and worthless idols caused them to become worthless themselves. They had rejected the LORD who gave them worth, in whose image they were made and by whose loving kindness, they were chosen.

Humanity, made in the image of God is created to worship that God. In doing so, we become more like the one whom were worship. Likewise, when the worship of God is substituted for the worship of and idol, we begin to become more like the idol that we are worshipping. In contemporary terms, if we worship money, money starts to define us. We see our own worth in relation to money and our relationships too become defined by it – rich or poor, debtor or creditor. If we worship success and status, we get our self-worth from those things and again, we only consider those who are similarly statussed or successful as worthy of our attention.

Is this why our society is becoming so fragmented? We can only relate to those in a narrow age range or interest group around us because we are now defined by what we do, wear, think and are involved in. Instead, we should be defined by the God in whose image we are made.

From Tina:

I was amazed at the wonderful questions you shared for the two very difficult Bible texts: 2 Kings 2:23ff and Genesis 6:1-4 in class today! Thanks for stepping up and taking some risks. Here are some of your insightful questions/comments:

On 2 Kings 2:23ff:
Is it a good or bad thing that the boys got mauled?
Why did the boys want Elisha to go away?
What was Elisha’s prior intention?
What do the she-bears symbolize?
Is the number 42 significant?
Why do the boys and not the baldhead get mauled?
Were there lots of bears around all the time?
What does baldhead mean?

We then discussed options:
Never call anyone a baldhead?
This is a cautionary tale–but for what audience? Children?
Shouldn’t Elisha be more mature?
Prophets are protected by God.
Who’s not in the scene? eg. the parents of the boys . . .

Gen. 6:1-4:

Who are the Nephillim? half angel and half human?
What did they do to deserve God’s wrath?
Where did sons of god come from?
What was the average life span of the time? Why limit to 120 years?
Were the Nephillim giants?
The women were “fair”–does that mean light-skinned?

What did you think of the multiple rereadings of the text I handed out that some of you read? (poetry, Disney version, Stephen King version, Brothers Grimm version, feminist version)? I wrote these for an article I did on this passage–I believe that by reimagining the text in different ways we can explore the meanings (plural) more deeply–encounter the text in some surprising ways.

What are your thoughts? Our blog can be a space to interact–to accept some ideas, challenge others, and rethink our own positions. I hope this report of your comments in class gets us started!

Tina

…”Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit”…. – 2 Kings 2:9

The first requirement to move in greater power and authority in God is to hunger for it. Yet even this hunger is born from God. Elisha hungered after God. Elisha saw many miracles as Elijah’s servant. But he wanted more. He wanted a double portion of Elijah’s spirit. When he asked Elijah for this, the prophet responded, “You have asked a difficult thing.” It wasn’t because it couldn’t be granted. Elijah knew that with great anointing came a great weight of responsibility and difficulty.

Second, humility comes before honor. Elisha was known as the “servant of Elijah.” How would you like to be known as “the servant of John”? Your name is not even mentioned. This was the preparation of Elisha. It has been the preparation of many men of God. Consider Joseph, the servant of Pharaoh. Consider David, the servant of Saul.

Third, Elisha committed himself totally to his calling. The Scripture says when Elisha was called to join Elijah, the younger man left his farm business completely. He slaughtered his oxen and had a great feast for the community. It was all or nothing. He could not fall back on his farm trade if his new venture didn’t work. This demonstrates Elisha’s pioneer spirit in stepping out, not knowing what was ahead.

Do you want greater anointing in God? “You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart. I will be found by you” (Jer. 29:13-14a). Begin thirsting for God’s anointing in your heart today. This is the starting place.

2 Kings 6:16
“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”

The prophet speaking here is Elisha which leads nicely into our Phunny Phobia!

Peladophobia- Fear of bald people

I think this one dates back to when Elisha called down some she-bears to attack some kids for calling him bald.

So I mentioned a little while back that I had gotten a sword after being knighted at church. Yes, it sounds cheesy and weird, but it meant more to me than I can really explain because despite it’s cheesiness it has been a reminder that I am in a spiritual war, battling demons and even my own flesh.

And yes, I have even at times found myself in sin, grabbing my sword (Shekinah) and waving it around, praying, and declaring battle.

And then today I was reading “The Happy Intercessor” by Beni Johnson when she quoted this Bible passage:

Then it happened that night that the angel of the LORD went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians; and when men rose early in the morning, behold, all of them were dead. (2 Kings 19:35)

It occurred to me how insane it was that because of some prayer, something so supernatural happened that God didn’t even have to work through His people. Why? Because He bypassed humanity and let all Heaven break loose!

Our prayer is like a sword. It actually does something.

Beni went on after quoting this passage to tell a story that I really enjoyed and thought you might enjoy as well:

“God showed me several years ago just how strong our prayers are. In the late ’90s, it was really cool to have a sword at church. many of us felt like having a sword was saying prophetically that we were in a war and that God was fighting for us. We used them for spiritual warfare and making prophetic declarations. All kinds of prophetic acts were done using swords. I was in a conference where we called all the women up and knighted them for the kingdom. It was a fun time.

I thought i would be really fun to get a dagger. I liked what daggers were used for in wartime. They used them to fight and to dig out arrow tips that wounded them in battle.

I went onto a website to order one. I found one called the state guardian dagger. Prophetically that sounded good to me. I felt like a guardian over my state. I ordered it wand waited six long weeks for it to arrive. During this season in my life, I felt like I was going through a time of deafness in hearing God speak. It was a quiet time. Well, the day came when the dagger came to the house. I couldn’t believe how big the box was. It must have been close to 6 feet high. I thought that they must really pack their good well. As I unpacked the box, I reached in and began pulling out this very long sword. As I pulled the sword from the box, my spirit ears opened up and I heard, ‘You think your prayers are like a dagger, but I think your prayers are like this sword.’”

For some reason, this particular miracle-story of Elisha is often ridiculed by otherwise conservative believers (that is, people who are willing to believe in a miraculous resurrection of Jesus) as pointless and unbelievable. Just today I was reading a book by Robert Jenson, a respected modern Lutheran theologian, who referred to it as a “parlour trick”. I thought, just for the fun of it, that I would post some of Peter Leithart’s comments on the deeper significance of this story within the context of 1-2 Kings and the OT as a whole. (Sorry, I forgot to record page references.)

Iron is a rare commodity in ancient Israel, so that losing an ax head will lead to significant debt. If he cannot pay, the debtor may have to enter “debt slavery” until he can restore the cost of the borrowed item…

From this perspective, Elisha’s miracle is no trivial demonstration of power. In recovering the ax head, he delivers the man from indebtedness and potentially slavery, as he delivers the widow (2 Kgs. 4:1-7). He is again acting as a kinsman-redeemer, restoring life and property to those who follow him. Elisha’s instruction to “take it up” (6:7) echoes his instruction to the Shunammite woman to “take up” her son (4:36), suggesting that by saving the ax head Elisha gives the man new life. His reversal of the laws of gravity reverses the laws of death and destruction, the tragic plot of loss (Dillard 1999, 121-26). Elisha heals and delivers by throwing salt into a spring (2:19-22) and meal into a pot (4:38-41), and these repeat the miraculous healing of the waters at Marah (Exod. 15). That Elisha accomplishes this miracle through a stick of wood would have interested Origen, turning the miracle into a sign not only of Easter but of Good Friday.

The miracle also symbolizes the future of Israel. The ax head sinks into the water and returns like Jonah the prophet. In Jonah, submersion and return is an image of Israel’s exile in the sea of Gentiles and its return to the land (Leithart 2000a, 179-86), and the ax head passing through the Jordan further strengthens the association with Israel’s exile and return. For the original exilic readers of 1-2 Kings, this narrative demonstrates again that clinging to the prophet and his word is the way of return–both the way of repentance and the way of restoration to the land. When Israel is sent to slavery to pay off its debt of sin, it hopes for a new exodus that will restore it to the land, in a cosmic Jubilee.

It is significant, further, that this resurrection images takes place in water, through submersion and return. In the previous chapter, Naaman goes down into the same water and comes back cleansed from his leprosy, reborn with flesh “like the flesh of a little child” (2 Kgs. 5:14), and the ax head sinks into the waters of the Jordan and is restored, saving the prophet form a debt.

Leithart has more to say, but I think this is sufficient to demonstrate at least the high probability that this isn’t a pointless “parlour trick” without greater theological significance.

GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU

“Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you.”  1 Peter 5:7

A STUDY IN DANIEL

Purpose – To unveil and see the sovereign hand of God at work in the history of the nations of mankind, of men, and to know and trust God to be sovereign in directing our individual lives.

When Your World Crumbles Around You

Daniel 1:1-7

Purpose – To know and trust God to care for us even when nations, our own, and others are falling; God will take care of us, and meet our needs.

I.  PEOPLE FALL AWAY FROM GOD (v.1; 2 Kings 21:18-26;  2 Kings 23:34;  Ezekiel 20:13, 16; 23:38;  Jeremiah 27:1-11)

II.  A KING IS TAKEN AND A KINGDOM’S RELIGION IS CAPTURED (v. 2;  1 Samuel 4:11; 5:1-9).

III.  THE WORLD ATTEMPTS TO MOLD AND CONTROL MINDS (vv.3-5).

IV.  THE SOVEREIGN HAND OF GOD IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS (vv. 6-7; Proverbs 21:1).

APPLICATION-
i.  Let’s stand upon the Word of God; reading, studying, hearing, and applying it to every area of our lives (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 Timothy 4:2).
ii.  Putting our faith and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ on Calvary’s cross, and guarding our hearts and minds from religion of men (Psalm 118:8).
iii.  Filling our minds with the things of God, holiness, righteousness, God’s glory, justice, peace, His love, mercy, goodness, bearing the fruits of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:16;  Ephesians 5:18; Galations 5:22-23).
iv.  Always keeping in mind the power of the sovereign hand of God over the affairs of men and nations will help us realize everyday, that, God is directing the events and circumstances of  our lives; that, He does not have a plan A and a plan B (Daniel 29, 37, 47).

-Tim A. Blankenship

You may find the study notes at Fire and Hammer.

I realize I have done a previous study on the prophet Daniel.  However, the following are study notes for a new series of sermons I am preaching at Carr Lane Baptist Church beginning January 03, 2010.  I will include hear a link to my previous study and to only the points on our church site.

GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU

“Casting all your care upon Him; for He cares for you.”  1 Peter 5:7

A STUDY IN DANIEL

Purpose – To unveil and see the sovereign hand of God at work in the history of the nations of mankind, of men, and to know and trust God to be sovereign in directing our individual lives.

When Your World Crumbles Around You

Daniel 1:1-7

Purpose – To know and trust God to care for us even when nations, our own, and others are falling; God will take care of us, and meet our needs.

OUTLINE -
I.  THE FALL OF A NATION (v. 1).
II.  THE CAPTIVITY OF A KING, AND KINGDOM’S RELIGION (v. 2).
III.  THE CAPTORS ATTEMPT TO MOLD AND CONTROL MINDS (vv. 3-5).
IV.  THE SOVEREIGN HAND OF GOD IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS (vv. 6-7).

Isaiah the prophet had prophesied over one hundred years before of the impending doom coming on the nation of Israel.  They had grown rich, soft, comfortable, complacent, and apathetic.  “No harm will come to us.” they would say, “After all we are God’s nation, God’s people.  We have the temple of God”; and oh so foolish in their hearts turning from God.

There is security with the LORD so long as the LORD is honored, revered, trusted and obeyed by His people.  When God’s people forsake Him, He does not forsake His people, however, He will discipline, correct, and rebuke them to get them back under His care.

I.  PEOPLE FALL AWAY FROM GOD (v.1)
Jehoiakim king of Judah was the son of Josiah, who was the son of Amon, the son of Manasseh (2 Kings 21:18-26).  Johoiakim was born Eliakim, but the king of Egypt changed his name to Jehoiakim and appointed him king of Jerusalem (2 Kings 23:34).  This falling of the kingdom had begun a few years earlier when the prophet Isaiah was warning of the hard heartedness, and their straying from God.

The reason for the captivity that we are reading about in this text is because of the people’s forsaking God, His Word and His commandments (Ezekiel 20:13, 16; 23:38).

When God had spoken throught he prophet Jeremiah to call the people to go out to Nebuchadnezzar and surrender that was their last opportunity to remain in their land (Jeremiah 27:1-11).

II.  A KING IS TAKEN AND A KINGDOM’S RELIGION IS CAPTURED (v. 2).
This was the first invasion by Nebuchadnezzar.  He took the king from his throne, and to Babylon.  He also took some of the “articles of the house of God”.  It seems to have been a way to imply that the power of the gods of a nation are determined by the conquering nations taking these articles with them, and housing them with their religious articles.  This is seen earlier in the nation of Israel’s history when the Philistines took the Ark of the Covenant and put it in the house of Dagon (1 Samuel 4:11; 5:1-9)

One thing we as Christians must know and keep in mind; just because our place of worship may be destroyed, in shambles, and the place of the “Lord’s Supper” be stolen does not mean that God is destroyed or stolen.  He is larger than our pieces of religion which are used to remember Him.  When the world may take the sign of the cross and abuse it, misuse it, and/or mock it that does not deminish the power of the cross of Jesus Christ.  Several years ago a man, believing he was designing some sort of artistic piece placed a designer cross in a jar of urine, and photographed it.  That did not affect the power of the cross of Jesus one iota.  It was saccreligious.  It caused an outrage among many, and it seemed with some that it was almost the end of the cross of Christ.  Not so however.  The power of the cross of Christ Jesus cannot be captured, destroyed, or diminished.

Religions of men can be captured, destroyed, diminished, and cast out; but the cross of Christ will continue in its power to save and change lives until Jesus Christ returns.

III.  THE WORLD ATTEMPTS TO MOLD AND CONTROL MINDS (vv.3-5).
In the day of Babylon’s captivity of the Jews and others they would take the captives and change their names, and give them a new diet.  For the Jewish people it would mean eating swine, and other unclean foods for them.  In the eyes of many of the world this rich food would be a “blessing” over what they had been eating.
Ashpenaz, a eunuch for the king, was to pick out choice youth from the kingdoms, including Israel, and give them a new diet, and teach them new things.  Fill their heads with new thoughts, divert them from what they had been taught, and gain their loyalty.

Even in a free country such as the USA our public schools, many colleges, and universities, endeavor to redirect minds from the basics of what they have been taught by their parents, churches, and private schooling; directing them to more liberal thought and leadership styles.  They do these things by calling basic life truths, Bible truths, and moral truths into question, and ridiculing any and all who will stand on those basics.

This thought is seen in the science of the thought of “Global warming”.  When some scientist began questioning the authenticity of the theory and its truth these men and women were called all sorts of insulting names; “Unlearned, ignorant, fools” and not even given a chance to prove their points.  The world is attempting, even now, to control the minds, and beliefs of the people.

IV.  THE SOVEREIGN HAND OF GOD IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS (vv. 6-7).
A changing of the names of these Jewish youth.  We are told of only four.  Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; probably because they were four who stood for what they had been taught, never followed the path of evil in Babylon, and stood their ground.  We do not hear them called by these names until a later chapter.  They are called by their Hebrew names at least 5 times from chapter one through chapter two, and yet most people only know them by their Babylonian names?   God wants us to know them by their names Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.  Daniel is referred to as Daniel most of the way through the book; why do we not continue to know Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah by their true names?

Daniel means “God is my judge” … Belteshazzar means “the keeper of the treasure of Baal”;  Hananiah means “Jehovah is gracious”  …Shadrach means “command of the moon god”; Mishael means “Who is like Jehovah” … Meshech means “the goddess Shach”;  Azariah means “Jehovah is my helper” … Abednego means “the fire god”.

Part of the reason and answer to the question above is that we too have been conditioned by what we have been taught.  Let’s begin retraining our thinking to direct ourselves to the thoughts of godly thinking, and living; and trusting that kings and kingdoms are ordained by God; they rise and fall by His decree; and that no king, kingdom, man or woman can stand without the hand of God ordaining it. “The king’s heart is in thehand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever He will” Proverbs 21:1

APPLICATION-
i.  Let’s stand upon the Word of God; reading, studying, hearing, and applying it to every area of our lives (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 Timothy 4:2).
ii.  Putting our faith and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ on Calvary’s cross, and guarding our hearts and minds from religion of men (Psalm 118:8).
iii.  Filling our minds with the things of God, holiness, righteousness, God’s glory, justice, peace, His love, mercy, goodness, bearing the fruits of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:16;  Ephesians 5:18; Galations 5:22-23).
iv.  Always keeping in mind the power of the sovereign hand of God over the affairs of men and nations will help us realize everyday, that, God is directing the events and circumstances of  our lives; that, He does not have a plan A and a plan B (Daniel 29, 37, 47).

-Tim A. Blankenshi

You may find my previous study posted on Fire and Hammer and the article on Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah and the other Daniel: The Educating Of The Youth.

We live in an UNCERTAIN world. A world in which nothing is what it seems to be. Some people profit from UNCERTAINTY like stockbrokers; others are desperately seeking for CERTAINTY. Doug Hubbard, risk analyst for Hubbard Decision Research, has defined UNCERTAINTY as followed: UNCERTAINTY is “a state of having limited knowledge where it is impossible to exactly describe existing state or future outcome.”

As Hubbard is right to the core, every human being, one more than the other, deals with UNCERTAINTY on every level of his or her daily live. We are UNCERTAIN about our health, our relationship, our work, our finances, morality as well as, on the more abstract level, security in the outside world. UNCERTAINTY is everywhere – we don’t know – we are UNCERTAIN.      

We are UNCERTAIN about our finances. Do we earn enough to finish the month without red ink? Which savings account should I open for the best interest rate? Do we have enough money to buy that new car; go to that exotic island on holiday; take a leave of absence or have a good old-folks-day? Others who have the money are UNCERTAIN on how to spend it. I need a bigger house because I don’t have enough room for my 62” TV-projector and movie installation or where to store all of my clothes and shoes. It’s like the story of the rich farmer that asked “What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops” (Luke 12).  We are UNCERTAIN about our financial matters.     

UNCERTAINTY is an emotion that is triggered by events. It was not just after American Airlines Flight 11 flew into the North Tower of the World Trade Center that Americans were UNCERTAIN over their security. Everything that happens in the public realm that is not according to what we expect gives us a feeling of UNCERTAINTY. News agencies are reporting on a daily basis about security breaches, child kidnappings, suicide bombings, robberies, murders and so on… Elisha’s servant was UNCERTAIN when he got up, saw an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city and asked, “Lord, what shall we do?” (2 Kings 6). For many, our home is the only place where we feel safe, for others even their own home is not safe enough so that they decide to install a panic room inside their home in case of a break-in. We are UNCERTAIN about our security.     

We are UNCERTAIN over religious matters. Islam, Buddhism, Jehovah, Mormonism, Scientology, Christianity. There is an absolute; Christianity is unique. It’s not a works-based religion. It’s a grace-based faith. It’s a relationship between you and God. We are serving a living Savior, and our founder’s tomb is empty. In other religions, you have to do or cannot do things, but in Christianity, it’s already D.O.N.E. Christ loves us and loved us so much that He died on the cross for our sins and that’s been D.O.N.E. In return, Jesus gave us a specific assignment. We have to accept Him as our Savior because whoever believes in Him is not condemned and shall have eternal life (John 3). Knowing this, we still have difficulty in doing this and therefore we are still UNCERTAIN about religious matters.     

We are UNCERTAIN over morals. As we look at our culture, we see the waves of moral erosion pounding against the very foundation of who we are. Entertainers are singing “I’m a slave 4 U”, “I wanna kill and rape you the way you raped me” and “What good is all the fame if you ain’t fucking the models.” Young women are wearing skimpier clothes with the day and what was once a dress for in the bedroom, is now the new fashion in nightlife. We are applying situational ethics to our lives to keep up a veil of illusion of moral CERTAINTY. We are rewriting the Ten Commandments. “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God”, BUT it’s O.K. to go to a movie or a concert or buy a CD that takes God’s name in vain in every other breath. ”You shall not steal”, BUT it’s O.K. to rob God by keeping your tithe.  “You shall not commit adultery,” BUT its O.K. to undress women with your eyes, to go to topless bars and to surf adult websites; you are not hurting anybody. We are living in the same moral state as Judges 21 – ‘In those days Israel had no king, everyone did as he saw fit.’ While we deviate from God’s awesome agenda and go our own way in trying to make the UNCERTAIN CERTAIN, we miss out on His best and settle for second best in which we ultimately will still be UNCERTAIN about morality.     

When we have to make decisions in our lives about things we are UNCERTAIN over, we are applying situational ethics or start to doubt and worry. Instead, we should cry out to God. Luke 12:25 says “Who you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” While we worry, we are spending time and energy on something that is impossible to know or may not happen at all.  Therefore, while we worry, which literally means, “to strangle” or “to feel troubled, uneasy, or distressed” we commit sin – we are self-centered and self-reliant instead of Christ-centered and Christ-reliant.      

We appreciate consistency because consistency makes the UNCERTAIN CERTAIN; we don’t have to think, doubt, or worry over it. However, consistency is not always God’s way and is often an illusion; a cover-up. The only thing that can really free us from worry is faith – faith in God. God has given us boats and He wants us to sail the boats. He has given us the anchor, the Bible, our absolute, and has told us to use the anchor because the “anchor will secure you and help you in the rough seas.” Without the anchor, we are ripped because we will hit reef after reef after reef. Some argue that they don’t have enough faith, but rest assured, we don’t have to worry about that because even faith as small as a mustard seed is enough (Matthew 17). In addition, we have to understand that Jesus is O.K. with doubt because without doubt there is no faith, but only knowledge. When we follow His agenda, He will show us “the life that is truly life” (1 Timothy 6).     

In the end, the only thing that can free us from worry, and help us to cope with UNCERTAINTY in an UNCERTAIN world, is ‘pure’ faith. In most of the situations when we are UNCERTAIN, we are worrying because we don’t know what’s best for US. We are addicted to personal pronouns. What should I Do? What will happen to Me if I do this or that? We are used to this self-centeredness because we life in a world full of I’s – iPod, iMac, I Do, I(ce cream) – It’s all about Me, Myself and I. So to make the journey from a state of UNCERTAINTY to becoming CERTAIN, we need to get rid of the I’s; we need to put Christ on top. We need to turn to Christ and become Christ-Centered because only then we will become Christ-Reliant which will ultimately lead to pure faith – faith in Yahweh – a God who is what you need Him to be in whatever life situation.     

PRAYER

 “God, I ADMIT to You the junk in my life, the sin in my life. And I TURN from that sin and I just ADMIT to You that I have messed up. I ADMIT the obvious to You. I know it’s no surprise to You, but I am just TELLING You that right now. And I TURN from my sins, and TURN to You. I BELIEVE God, to the best of my ability, that You’ve sent Jesus Christ to pay the price on the cross for all of my sins. But that stuff is D.O.N.E. I RECEIVE Your forgiveness. I RECEIVE Your grace. I RECEIVE Your mercy. I know I don’t deserve it, but I just RECEIVE that first-class ticket. Jesus Christ, infiltrate my life. Take control of me. Take control of me.” 
     

If you prayed that prayer, I want to congratulate you. You’ve just established or reconfirmed your relationship with Christ. Once we become CHRIST-centered, once we absorbed Him, what will happen is that we become CHRIST-reliant because the Holy Spirit inside of us will show us how to live. This can be the greatest prayer you ever prayed because this is going to be that prayer of transformation that you can pray that will bring you from UNCERTAINTY to CERTAINTY. That will bring you to God through Christ, and you can do it right now, right where you are seated. So just pray this prayer only if you want to. Say this words; if you don’t want to, that’s cool.      

“God, I am UNCERTAIN, I am UNCERTAIN like the rich farmer. And Father, right now, I BELIEVE that Jesus absorbed all of my sins on the cross. He absorbed the penalty and the pain. Jesus did. And I ADMIT that I am a sinner. I BELIEVE Jesus did that and now I want to make Jesus the center of my life. I get off the throne. I put Christ on the throne. God, I want you to envelop me with your grace, to wash me clean. I want to take self out and put Christ in. I do not want to be SELF-absorbed; I want to be CHRIST-absorbed. I do not want to be SELF-reliant; I want to be CHRIST-reliant. For this day forward, I GIVE you tax, title, and license and everything Lord, God, now I want to RELY on You. I want to DISCOVER what You have for me. I GIVE my life to You. God we give this time to You, and the voices prayer in the name that is above every other name, Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.” 
     

Open eyes = revelation for the now

1. Revelation that God brings awareness to potential dangers and helps us avert them
- a spiritual enemy is trying to steal the treasures that God has in store for us
- note these are not trials that God has for us, but blocks by the Devil to stumble us

2. Revelation that helps inspire faith and confidence in God in us
- e.g. The servant saw things the natural and was afraid of the enemies approaching but Elijah saw things by faith and saw an army that far outnumber the enemy

3. Revelation that is God is with us
- e.g. Hills full of horses and chariots of fire around Elijah -when God is with us, we are in the majority

4. Revelation that God protects
- e.g. Having chariots of fire around us and striking the enemies with blindness

5. Revelation of grace
- they chose to bless their enemies instead of exacting revenge and killing them -God will do the rest

In 23:1-3, Josiah leaves nothing unclear.

National elders come together and listen to the Law.

This becomes their charge.

Funny that the first 17 years of Josiah’s reign aren’t described in any detail.

It’s a bit like how we know nearly nothing about Jesus’ childhood.

Anyway, once Josiah learns of the Lord’s law, he kicks right into gear.

Elisha had to deal with a dead child (2 Kings 4:29-37). It is true that, in his instance, it was natural death; but the death with which you have to come in contact is not the less real death because it is spiritual. Boys and girls are as surely as grown-up people, “dead in trespasses and sins.” May none fail fully to realize the state in which all human beings are naturally found. Unless you have a very clear sense of the utter ruin and spiritual death of children, you will be incapable of being made a blessing to them. Go to them, I pray you, not as to sleepers whom you can by your own power awaken from their slumber, but as to spiritual corpses who can only be quickened by a power divine. Elisha aimed at nothing less than the restoration of the child to life. May you never be content with aiming at secondary benefits, or even with realizing them; may you strive for the grandest of all ends, the salvation of immortal souls. Your business is not merely to teach children to read the Bible, not barely to inculcate the duties of morality, nor even to instruct them in the mere letter of the gospel, but your high calling is to be the means, in the hands of God, of bringing life from heaven to dead souls.

Resurrection, then, is our aim! To raise the dead is our mission! How is so strange a work to be achieved? If we yield to unbelief we shall be staggered by the evident fact that the work to which the Lord has called us is quite beyond our own personal power. We cannot raise the dead. We are, however, no more powerless than Elisha, for he of himself could not restore the Shunammite’s son. Need this fact discourage us? Does it not rather direct us to our true power by shutting us out from our own fancied might? I trust we are all of us already aware that the man who lives in the region of faith dwells in the realm of miracles…

You are sent into the world not to do the things which are possible to man, but those impossibilities which God worketh by His Spirit, by the means of His believing people. You are to work miracles, to do marvels. You are not, therefore, to look upon the restoration of these dead children, which in God’s name you are called to bring about, as being a thing unlikely or difficult when you remember who it is that works by your feeble instrumentality.

-Charles Spurgeon: read the rest at The Spurgeon Archive

Here’s another one of my Bible book paintings, this time about 1. and 2. Kings. The picture shows King Salomon and all the kings that came after him.

Salomon was the last king of the united monarchy and – according to Kings – was a major reason the kingdom split after his death. The left side pictures the northern kingdom of Israel, which ended up in Assyrian exile, and the right side pictures the southern kingdom of Judah, which ended up in Babylon.

And so, after decades of disintegration and decay, the northern kingdom of Israel finally collapses (v. 6):

In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

These people eventually fade into the places to which they were exiled, the process hastened by years of covenant compromise, especially on the part of those who were meant to be guardians of the tradition.

What might this look like today? or is this already the fate of the church in the west — invisible in its cultural setting, after long years of compromise in which the social norms of the dominant culture have become the common values of the church as well?

Are Apostles and Prophets still a part of Christian doctrine? Does the Gospel of Jesus Christ have room for Apostles and Prophets? If we accept the Holy Bible (I use the king James version) as the text for Christianity then the answer to these questions has to be YES.

You cannot claim to be a Christian and not accept the fact that Apostles and Prophets are the mouth piece for Jesus Christ.

We’re all familiar (I hope) with many of the Old Testament prophets like Adam, Noah, Moses, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Isaiah, Elijah, Elisha and Malachi etc. We could write essays or Books on each one. This little post is just on scripturally proving that the Gospel of Jesus Christ includes Prophets and Apostles. Eventually we will tell you where to find them. Not all Christian religions have them, in fact I know of none that have Prophets and Apostles as part of their doctrine.

In Deuteronomy 18:22 it says “When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.” You can judge a prophet by what he says. If he prophecies and that thing comes to pass it is proof that he is called of God to be a prophet.

1 Samuel 3:20 read as follows “And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.” This is just one of many verses in the Bible talking about the use of prophets in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.

1 Samuel 9:9 refer to the terms of both prophet and seer “(Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer: for he that is now called a Prophet was beforetime called a Seer.)”

2 Kings 17:13 is evidence of the Lord using the prophets to communicate with His people. “Yet the LORD testified against Israel, and against Judah, by all the prophets, and by all the seers, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.” If the Lord used prophets to communicate with his people back then, why doesn’t he do so today?

In Nehemiah 9:30 the Lord testified against his people, trying to get them to repent and he used Prophets to do it “Yet many years didst thou forbear them, and testifiedst against them by thy spirit in thy prophets: yet would they not give ear: therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the people of the lands.”

2 Chronicles 29:25 specifically refer to Nathan being a prophet “And he set the Levites in the house of the LORD with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, and of Gad the king’s seer, and Nathan the prophet: for so was the commandment of the LORD by his prophets.” Do you know of a modern day prophet by name?

Not only did the Lord use prophets to communicate to His people but got upset with His people for ignoring what the Prophets had to say as it implies in 2 Chronicles 36:16 “But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.”

Have we not shown enough evidence of the Lords use of Prophets? There is more. Keep in mind that there is even more evidence regarding the Lords use of Prophets than what is present in this post.

Prophets are very special people. Yes they are people. They are not Gods they are men called of God to the office of being a prophet as indicated in Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” A prophet is not just a prophet to a group of people but a prophet to the nations of the world.

One of my favorite verses regarding prophets in all of Christian Scripture is found in Amos 3:7 “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” .

Now we move to a few verses found in the New Testament regarding the teaching of the prophets and references to Prophets and Apostles: Matthew 11:13 “For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.”

This verse found in the Gospel of Luke talks about God using holy prophets since the world began. Did The Lord use Prophets since the world began only to stop when the Twelve Apostles died off? Luke 1:70 “As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:”.

As I started this Blog and have had numerous feedback I have come to learn that there are Christians out there that do not consider the Old Testament part of the gospel of Jesus Christ. They say that Christ fulfilled the Law of Moses and so the Old Testament is worthless. They err in their assumptions. The truth of the Law of Moses in general is a preparation for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Who would dare say that the gospel of the Old Testament has nothing valid for us? Additionally not all the Old Testament was about the Law of Moses. There we the Patriarchs and there teachings before the Prophet Moses.

Having said all that and for the benefit of any who think that way here is New Testament teachings long after the Law of Moses was fulfilled.

One of the first things Jesus did at the start of His ministry was to call twelve Apostles as indicated by Matthew 10:1-4 “And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.

One of my other favorite scriptures about Prophets and Apostles is found in the Book of Ephesians. Ephesians 2:19-20 “Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;“

This is a powerful verse regarding Prophets and Apostles. This verse calls the Apostles and Prophets the foundation of the gospel or household of God. With Jesus Christ being the chief corner stone.

The foundation of the Gospel or Christianity is built upon Apostles and Prophets with the Savior being the corner stone. Using this scripture can you be a Christian without believing in Apostles and Prophets?

During the time of the Apostles they used the phrase “as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit in Ephesians 3:5 “Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;”

Back in the days of the Apostles and in our day they were and we have “children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive”. The solution is found in Ephesians 4:11-14 where it says “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;”

We need Apostles and Prophets as much now as they did in the primitive Church.

Here are three more New Testament passages of scripture testifying of The Lords use of Apostles and Prophets.

Hebrews 1:1 “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets.”

2 Peter 3:2 “That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:”

1 Corinthians 12:28 “And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.”

Besides what we have already learned of the Prophets, being a mouth piece for the Lord we learn from Matthew 16:19 “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Additional duties of Prophets.

From other Christian Scripture we learn more about Prophets and Apostles. Jacob 4: 4 “For, for this intent have we written these things, that they may know that we knew of Christ, and we had a hope of his glory many hundred years before his coming; and not only we ourselves had a hope of his glory, but also all the holy prophets which were before us.”

D&C 1:14 “And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people;”

D&C 1:38 “38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.”

So is there a living Prophet today? Are there Twelve Apostles alive today to lead Christianity? The answer is a resounding yes!

It started with the prophet Joseph Smith when God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph. From that point on, after a long apostacy, the heavens were opened and The Lord once again started speak to men through Prophets and Apostles.

2 Chronicles 35-Ezra 10

*image courtesy of bosela at www.sxc.hu

While 2 Kings ended on a rather sad note, with Jehoiachin king of Judah in the court of Babylon, 2 Chronicles ends on a high note.  Being written later than Kings, Chronicles has more information, and flashes forward about 70 years to the time of the return from the Babylonian Captivity.  God had prophesied specifically about this return through both Isaiah and Jeremiah (Jeremiah 25:12, 29:10; Isaiah 44:24-45:13).  As usual, God kept His word.  He swayed the heart of king Cyrus (Proverbs 21:1)to send the Jews back to Jerusalem to rebuild the Temple, even decreeing that the costs should be covered by the royal treasury (Ezra 6).

There is a neat connection made between Chronicles and Ezra.  If you notice, the last words of Chronicles and the first words of Ezra are identical.  There is a definite seam or joint here.  The writers of both had a point they were trying to make – Judah was removed from the land because of sin, and restored because of God’s faithfulness.  It was not that Judah was full of great people, or that they did some marvelous thing while in Babylon and Persia.  God had prophesied in advance that a king named would send His people back into the land.  He receives all the glory for the return!

This hasn’t changed over time, and into the New Covenant.  Despite our failures, even as believers, God’s faithful love for His people endures forever (1 Chronicles 16:34, etc.).  Paul scolded the Galatians for thinking that they could keep themselves saved and make themselves holier, even though they had only been saved by the working of the Spirit (Galatians 3).  We do the same thing today.  We come to Jesus with nothing in our hands, we throw ourselves on His mercy and grace, and receive forgiveness and salvation through no work of our own but by the sacrifice of Jesus and the baptism of the Holy Spirit.  Then, we pick ourselves up, dust off a bit, and think we can carry it from there.  But it is not our goodness that prompts God to action.

It’s His love.

Let’s live in light of this.  Let’s not think that we can make ourselves holier on our own power.  We need the guidance and empowerment of the Holy Spirit, the mercy of Jesus, and the forgiveness of the Father.  Since we began in the Spirit, let us walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-17).

originally appeared at Words of Reason

2 Kings 15-25

*image courtesy of alitaylor at www.sxc.hu

Today we witnessed the down-hill tumble of both the kingdoms of Israel and Judah.  It wasn’t pretty.  If you’ve tried at all to keep up with which king was in which kingdom (which ain’t easy!), you may have noticed that all the kings of Israel were judged as wicked, and only some of the kings of Judah were judged as doing what was right in the sight of the Lord.  They both trace back to Jeroboam (the wicked king of Israel who set up the golden calves in Bethel and Dan, 1 Kings 12:25-33), or David.  Because of Israel’s idolatry, worship of false gods, and wicked kings, the kingdom fell first.  We also witnessed the birth of the people who would later become known as the Samaritans (1 Kings 17:1-6, 24-41).

In 722 B.C., Shalmaneser, king of Assyria deported the people of Israel to other lands, and brought people from other lands into Israel’s land.  This was to keep the people subdued.  When God’s anger struck the new settlers in Israel, Shalmaneser had some of the Israelite priests return to the land to instruct the people in how to worship the Lord, the God of Israel.  The people accepted some of these teachings, but continued worshiping other gods and simply blended the belief systems.  The Israelites left in the land also began intermarrying with these new people.  Thus, a new group of people arose who were both ethnically mixed, and religiously mixed.  This is why the hatred between the Jews and the Samaritans existed by the time of the 1st century (John 4:9; Luke 10:25-37).

First Kings 17:7-23 tells us that all this happened because Israel had sinned against the Lord.  The kingdom of Judah, unfortunately, doesn’t learn anything by watching this happen.  Even after the amazing reforms of Josiah (2 Kings 22-23), Judah still went after other gods and worshiped with idols.  God is a patient God.  He gave chance after chance after chance to both kingdoms in Israel.

And still they rebelled.

God sent prophets to warn the people.  He promised blessing if they would follow Him, and yet they rebelled.  He threatened cursing if the would not follow Him, yet they rebelled.  He sent disasters on them, trying to get their attention and draw them back to Himself, yet they rebelled.  Finally, he sent Israel off into captivity as He promised He would (Deuteronomy 28).  Even then, Judah did not listen.  In the end, Judah went into captivity at the hands of the Babylonians, just as God had foretold (2 Kings 20:12-21).

Let us heed God’s warnings in our lives.  Let’s not let sin so entangle us that we lose sight of who we are in Christ, and just how righteous He is.  Paul told the Corinthians that there were those who were weak and ill, even dead, because of sin in their lives (1 Corinthians 11:27-32).  Just as God sent warning after warning before taking Judah out of the land and into captivity, sometimes God may have to take a Christian out of the world to put an end to their sin and shameful blaspheming of Christ’s name.  Let us not be those who have to suffer the punishment of God before we repent.  Let us heed the warnings and turn back to Jesus in repentance, casting ourselves on His mercy.

2 Kings 4-15

*image courtesy of asheley at www.sxc.hu

“What do you want to pray about tonight?” I asked my 2½ year-old son.

“Umm… snacks!”

“You want to pray for snacks?”

“Uh huh, that God will give us snacks.”

“Ok, go ahead.”

“God, please give us some snacks tomorrow, amen.”

Elisha’s request of Elijah was that he would receive a double portion of the spirit that resided on his master, Elijah.  Second Kings goes on to relate the fulfillment of this promise by recording twice the number of miracles in Elisha’s ministry as in Elijah’s ministry.  Second Kings 4-6 shows us several, rapid-fire miracles.  A common theme throughout these miracle stories is that each one met a need.  These weren’t just flashy shows of the power of God in Elisha’s life, they met various needs in various ways.  Some were weightier than others:  we see a widow being saved from poverty, a son given, then restored to life, and a commander being healed of leprosy.  These were all dire situations into which God intervened.

However, several were needs that we might consider mundane: fixing a pot of stew that otherwise would have been thrown out, feeding a hundred men with a small amount of food, and getting a lost ax head back for a prophet who had borrowed it.  These might seem trivial, especially the last one.  We might even think them beneath God’s concern, and certainly His miraculous intervention.

God loves His children.  What is important to us (assuming godly standards of course) is important to Him.  This man lost a valuable piece of equipment, and worse, it was borrowed!  There was no running to Lowe’s to get a new one.  The man was concerned about his reputation and relationship with his friend.  Now, did he expect God to move heaven and earth, to temporarily suspend the laws of physics to bring it back?  Probably not.  Nonetheless, God cared, and met the man’s need.

We serve the God who even cares about our tools!

When he first said he wanted to pray for snacks, I thought it was silly.  But then I realized that my son had better theology than I did.  I had taught him that every good gift comes from the Father above (James 1:7).  He accepted my words as the words of God, as they were in this case(1 Thessalonians 2:13)!  So, snacks are good, God gives all good things, God gives snacks!  God please give us snacks tomorrow.  And God heard it.

And I’m sure He smiled.

God is our Father, and He is a good Father who meets our needs and wants us to come to Him with them (Matthew 6:9-11, 7:7-11; James 4:1-3).  He knows the little details of our lives, right down to the hairs on our head and he cares for us more than anything else in creation (Matthew 10:29-31).

Let’s never think that our need is beneath God’s concern.  If we are asking not out of selfishness, but in child-like faith, and according to God’s will, God will hear us and answer us (James 5:15; 1 John 5:14; Matthew 18:3).  Let us approach God with the simple faith of a child, humbly asking Him to supply our needs.

He will hear, and He will smile.

1 Kings 16 – 2 Kings 4

*image courtesy of jazza at www.sxc.hu

On everyone’s short list of baby names, I’m sure, is the name of today’s hero: Jehoshaphat.  Aside from having a snazzy name, and apparently being known for his jumping abilities, Jehoshaphat had a remarkable characteristic that reveals itself in today’s passage.

Particularly in 1 Kings 22 and 2 Kings 3, Jehoshaphat shows his dependence on God.  In both these situations, Jehoshaphat finds himself allied with the king of Israel (Ahab and Joram, respectively) in a military situation that requires some guidance.  In the first instance, the question is whether or not the two kings should go to war against Aram.  In the second, the kings of Israel, Judah, and Edom find themselves in the predicament of having run out of water in the midst of the desert.  In both situations, Jehoshaphat’s natural tendency is the same:

Let’s ask the Lord!

Whether it was seeking wisdom (yes!  three days in a row!  sweet!), or seeking provision, Jehoshaphat went to God.  He asks virtually the same question both times, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord that we might inquire of?”  He also affirms this sentiment further.  In 2 Kings 3, when told that Elisha is nearby, he says “The word of the Lord is with him.”  In 1 Kings 22, he mildly rebukes Ahab for not accepting the message from God through Micaiah just because he doesn’t like it.  Jehoshaphat valued the wisdom of God even when it wasn’t convenient for him.

Let us be the same!  When faced with a decision, let us always first think of asking God.  When faced with a need or some threat, let us always first think to go to God with our need.  As believers in Jesus Christ, we don’t even have to go through a prophet!  We have a new and living way into the presence of God, and because of this Way (that is, Jesus), we can enter His presence boldly (Hebrews 10:19-23).  If we ask anything in His Name and according to His will, He will answer us (John 14:14; 1 John 5:14).  So let us enter boldly, not on our own worth but Christ’s, and seek God.  We will find Him when we seek Him with all our hearts (Jeremiah 29:13)!